


Schadenfreude

by cryogirl



Series: Soft, sweet, stupid meet-cutes [4]
Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: Alternate Universe - Never Met, I need help, M/M, Meet-Cute, Of course a Meet-Cute, clumsy link, somebody stop me, very clumsy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-24
Updated: 2020-05-24
Packaged: 2021-03-02 21:28:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24353632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cryogirl/pseuds/cryogirl
Summary: Rhett is a nice, caring person. He isn’t gloaty.That doesn’t stop him from laughing when a moron runs straight into a tree in the park.
Relationships: Rhett McLaughlin/Link Neal
Series: Soft, sweet, stupid meet-cutes [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1758274
Comments: 11
Kudos: 51





	Schadenfreude

**Author's Note:**

> Written for another tumblr-prompt. Soho-x, you’re the best for posting these and thus keeping my boredom at bay. ;)
> 
> Enjoy?

Rhett was not a bad person.

He really wasn’t mean, or unsympathetic; no, he always apologised when he bumped into someone, he helped elderly women across the street and he even volunteered in the local dog shelter on some weekends. He was, all in all, a very considerate and nice guy.

However, that didn’t mean that he didn’t burst into a hearty laugh when he witnessed how a man about his age who was running through the park suddenly lost control over his limbs and after a few stumbling steps crashed face first into a nearby beech. It was hilarious how the runner tried to stop his fall, flailing about. Rhett was sure that if he’d had a camera one when it happened, he would have gotten a million clicks with this piece of ‘ultimate fail’ gold.

He was still trying to regain his composure when he glanced back to the tree and saw that the man was wincing in pain and clutching his face. It looked as if he really had hurt himself. “Oh, shit” Rhett muttered as he stood up from the bench he’d been sitting on and hurried over to the stranger. The guy was about his age and had dark hair cut into strange bangs. In his hands, he was holding the remnants of a pair of glasses and Rhett noticed that a small trickle of blood was running from his forehead down onto his cheek.

“Crap man, are you okay?” Rhett asked. He was genuinely worried now, even though he still couldn’t suppress his occasional chuckles. The images of the stranger stumbling and falling kept playing on loop in his mind, and it just made him crack up.

The other man whispered softly and looked up at Rhett. “Why are you grinning, jerk?” he said and apparently he tried to scowl before he noticed how much that hurt. “Fuck…” he moaned.

“Sorry man, it’s just the way you tripped, that was super…” Rhett stopped when the stranger shot him an angry glance and he tried his best to bite back another smile at that adorable expression. “Come on, let’s get you over to that bench, yeah?” He put a hand on the strangers shoulder and led him over to where he’d been sitting. He made the man sit down and squatted before him, gently cradling his face in order to inspect the wound.

“Are you a freaking nurse or what?” The runner was still pissed.

Rhett shook his head. “No, but I grew up with five younger siblings. Lots of bloody knees and scratches to fix, believe me. But if you don’t want my help, I’ve no problem to leave you here with a head wound and no glasses.” He pretended to stand back up, but the other man quickly grabbed his hand.

“No, please” he said, and he sounded almost panicky now. “A head wound?!”

Rhett knelt down which meant that he was on eye-level with the runner. He took his face in his own hands again. “Nah, just a split I guess. Nothing serious, but you might need a few stitches.” He found a tissue in his pocket and gently wiped the blood away. Instinctively Rhett began to stroke soothing patterns on the other man’s skin but caught himself when he was given a weird look. Rhett was decidedly not noticing how pretty the guy was even with blood stains all over his face.

“You’re a bit clumsy, huh?” he asked to distract from his strange behaviour. The man blushed and bit his lip. 

He mumbled something and extended his right hand. “Kitchen knife,” he said and pointed at a faint white line on his palm. Again by pure instinct, Rhett grabbed the hand and brushed his fingers over the scar. The other man’s breath hitched slightly and he pulled his hand back, but only to extend the other arm instead. He showed Rhett a pitted pink spot and explained: “Kitchen stove.”

Rhett gently took his elbow and in a bold move he couldn’t explain to himself later, he pressed his lips to the destroyed raised skin. The only reasons he could find were the guy’s cuteness and his own weakness for men who acted a bit naïve and helpless.   
The stranger didn’t protest. He smiled softly at Rhett and reached for his shirt collar. Rhett’s heartbeat quickend as he watched the man pulling the fabric back, exposing a small dent in the skin of his neck. Rhett instantly put his mouth on the scar, enjoying the smooth texture of the skin around it. He sucked and licked and almost missed it when the man breathed: “Barbie doll…”

Rhett spluttered and snorted, awkwardly spitting on the other guy’s neck. “What?”

The other one pouted and rubbed Rhett’s saliva from his body. “That one was a Barbie doll, okay? I was playing and I think I slipped or something and fell onto the doll. One of the shoes went right into the flesh. Had to go to the doctor to get it out.”

Rhett was wheezing, wiping a tear out of the corner of his eye. He felt bad because the guy looked truly miserable, but he just couldn’t stop. A freaking Barbie shoe. “Sorry” he said in between laughs. 

The stranger scowled at him for a few more moments before he started to grin as well. “It was pretty stupid, I guess.”

Rhett eventually stopped chuckling and realised that he was still sitting on the ground in front of the man in a somewhat awkward position. He got up and sat down next to him on the park bench.

“I’m Rhett, by the way.” After he’d kissed and spat on the man, it seemed only fair to let him know his name. The other one’s face brightened and he smiled even wider. “Link” he said and blushed a bit. “Thank you for helping me, Rhett. Even though you laughed at me.”

“I’m _sorry_ ” Rhett said. “It just looked so ridiculous. Why did you trip like that, didn’t you look where you were going?”

“Well…” Link’s face reddened even more underneath the blood smears. “There might’ve been a handsome distraction on one of the benches nearby.” He gave Rhett a shy glance and Rhett’s heart fluttered. He wasn’t really used to being called ‘handsome’.

“Huh? And you thought the best way to attract my attention was to crash into the next tree?” he teased.

“It worked pretty well, didn’t it?” 

Rhett grinned and shook his head. He took Link’s hand and pressed a small kiss to the knuckles. “Extremely well. But the next time you want my attention, please don’t run into a car or fall down a man hole. Just give me a smile, that’s enough.”

**Author's Note:**

> Tumblr: cryo-girl


End file.
